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August  2013

Fun Had By All at Fishing Rodeo

The annual fishing rodeo was recently held at Lost Mountain Park. Every year the Natural Resource Management staff of Cobb County, Parks, Recreation and Cultural Affairs Department hosts a fishing rodeo for children ages 3—16 years old. The rodeo is free, and prizes and trophies are given out to the most fish caught in each age group and a tropy for the top five biggest fish caught. Everyone who enters the fishing rodeo also receives a prize bag full of goodies that have been donated by several businesses. Over 100 children participated in the rodeo this year. The winners were as follows:

Most Fish Caught
Ages 3-6 - Serenity York (9 fish)

Ages 7-9 - Jonathan Rhudy (19 fish)
Ages 10-12 - Kenny Kreikemeier (10 fish)
Ages 13-16 - Caleb Martin (7 fish)

Biggest Fish Category
1st Place – Justin Pumillo (4lb, 91/2oz bass - pictured)
2nd Place – Maddie Hodges (1lb, 14oz catfish)
3rd Place – Matthew Jones (1lb, 7oz catfish)
4th Place – Caleb Martin (1lb catfish)
5th Place – Jonathan Rhudy (14oz catfish)

Congratulations to all the winners!

2013 'Fun in the Park' Photo Contest
As you are out enjoying Cobb County Parks, Recreation and Cultural Affairs' parks and activities, be sure to bring your camera and capture the fun and memories of your sports activities, the beauty of nature and wildlife in the parks, and anything else that shows why you enjoy your day at the park. The 9th Annual "Fun in the Park' Photo Contest will be accepting entries throughout the summer. Enter up to 10 of your best shots for fun and awards! Open to all photographers. Digital and print photos accepted. See rules and download entry form below at the photo contest web page.

Arty Parties for Birthdays
Did you know our art centers offer Arty Parties for Birthdays? The Mable House Arts Center, The Arts Place - Mountain View and The Arts Station - Big Shanty are available for art-inspired birthday parties! Available party days and times are subject to programming and staff availability. Contact us to schedule your party at least 3 weeks prior to your requested date. Parties are available for children ages 4-12 years old costing $5 to $7 per child, plus a room rental fee of $20 per hour and a refundable deposit of $50. For more information, contact your local arts center.

Celebrate Freedom Atlanta Festival at Jim Miller Park

The 'Celebrate Freedom Atlanta Festival' will be held on Saturday, August 31st at Jim R. Miller Park in Marietta. The festival will host Atlanta's largest free one-day concert event, a road race and festival with fun and food for the whole family. Radio station 104.7 'The Fish' and Athletics8.com Marena Group's activewear line present the 'Celebrate Freedom' 5K-10K road race. The race will kickoff this annual festival. The race is open to elite and recreational runners, walkers, and families (jog strollers are welcome). The post race party will be all-day fun for the entire family with concerts and festival fun! For information about the race, concert preformers and the festival, see www.celebratefreedomatlanta.com.

New Tennis Program for Adults

Cobb Tennis Centers and USTA-Atlanta are teaming up to provide a new program for beginner adults to learn how to play tennis. Sponsored by USTA-Atlanta, the 'Tennis Apprentice' program will provide instruction to teach beginner adults to play tennis and work towards the goal of competing in beginner USTA leagues. Starting the weeks of September 9th and October 28th, students will take 6 weeks of instruction and then be signed up for winter season USTA leagues. Teams will consist of your fellow program members and you will compete against other area 'Tennis Apprentice' program members. Students enrolled in the program will receive a free tennis racket and free USTA membership! All this for the introductory-to-tennis fee of $50 for the six weeks of instruction. For information, contact your closest Cobb Tennis Center.

SPLOST Projects Update
On March 15, 2011, a referendum on a four-year SPLOST (Special Local Option Sales Tax) was approved by voters. This program will be in effect from January 1, 2012 through December 31, 2015. From this SPLOST, Cobb County Parks, Recreation and Cultural Affairs will be utilizing $82,023,000 for revitalization, facility renovations and upgrades to parks and facilities. Planning, coordinating and scheduling projects are in their early stages, but you will now be able to see some of the work in progress or soon to begin. Here is a list of current projects:

• New scoreboards have been delivered and have been installed in all parks except Harrison, two at Fair Oaks, Sweetwater, two at Noonday, one at Wallace and one at Hurt Road Park. The remaining boards will be installed in the next few weeks, weather permitting.
• Four bids were received for the replacement of Harrison Tennis Center building on May 23rd. The joint venture of Artlantic, Inc. and Archimetric Design and Construction was awarded the construction contract at the BOC meeting on June 11th. Bonds and insurance documentation are being assembled by the contractor. Construction will begin after the contract is fully executed.
• The Kennworth Park and Terrell Mill Park Tennis Centers building replacement construction documents have been submitted to Purchasing and the two projects will bid as a single contract on August 8th.
• The RFP for the design of the replacement of the tennis center buildings at Fair Oaks Park and Sweetwater Park has been submitted to Purchasing and proposals were due July 25th.
• Planning and procurement of miscellaneous materials for improvements at Central Aquatic Center is completed. UV disinfection equipment has been delivered and installed. Door and hardware work is completed. Diving board replacement is completed. Proposals have been received for painting the steel structure in the natatorium and replacement of the pool surface (marcite). This work is scheduled to start in late July; the pool will be closed July 25th through August 25th.
• The Hyde Farm Historical Architecture project is moving forward. Treatment of the existing buildings has been identified as the first priority and an analysis of existing conditions is proceeding by the historical architect. Further analysis of the buildings is underway. An initial report along with other deliverables was reviewed at a meeting with the architect and other team members on June 21st. Decisions regarding treatment options and design work for the buildings are continuing. The next progress meeting with the consultant is scheduled for August 8th.
• Waterworks Atlanta was awarded the construction of the swimming pool renovations and new pool house at Sewell Park at the June 25th BOC meeting. Bonds and insurance documentation are being assembled by the contractor. Construction is scheduled to begin in early September and be completed by Memorial Day 2014.
• The design for the renovation of the fields and replacement of the concession building at Sewell Park is nearing completion and has been submitted to Community Development for preliminary review. The design is anticipated to be submitted to Purchasing for bidding in the last quarter of 2013 and construction is scheduled to start in early 2014.
• The field renovation work at Noonday Park is continuing. Sod placement is completed on fields 1, 2, 3, 10, 11 and 12 and will be installed on field 9, weather permitting. The construction of Fields 7 & 8 will proceed when Fields 9 & 10 are completed and can continue while the remainder of the park is open.
• The construction of the cross-tie retaining walls at Lions Park is substantially completed. A punch list of minor items has been issued to the contractor.
• A notice to proceed was issued to Croft & Associates on May 22nd for the design of the subsurface and building infrastructure improvements at Jim Miller Park.
• Replacement of equipment associated with the air quality improvements at South Cobb Aquatic Center has started. A new coil and new compressors have been installed in the existing dehumidification unit. A reheat coil has been ordered and will be installed when received. Quotes have been received for replacement of the marcite pool surface and quotes are being solicited for the interior painting. The pool resurfacing and painting is scheduled to start in late August. A purchase order has been issued for new evacuator benches similar to the ones installed at Mountain View Aquatic Center. The pool is scheduled to be closed August 26th through September 20th.
• Planning for air quality improvements at West Cobb Aquatic Center is continuing. A purchase order for a new dehumidification unit has been submitted and a purchase order to install the unit has also been issued. New light fixtures have been installed. Seven bids for the replacement of the existing metal roof were received on June 27th. Painting quotes have been received. All of the work is scheduled to start in early fall. The pool is scheduled to be closed September 23 through December 6, but that is subject to revision depending on the delivery time for the new roof panels.
• The parking lot at the Fontaine Road Silver Comet Trailhead has been paved as part of the CCDOT paving contract. Curb stops and striping will be completed within the next few weeks.

These are just a few of the numerous projects that you will see in the next few years updating and revitalizing our parks' system. For a complete listing of projects and updates, see the Splost 2011 web page on the Cobb County website.